US Congress

435• Originally only 64 in H of R– 1 rep for every 30,000 people

• 1810: 186 in H of R• 1922: 435 in H of R• 1929 Reapportionment Act: capped H

of R at 435• What does that mean…– As US population grow your voice become

fainter

House of Representatives• Incumbent: already in office• Constituents: people being represented• Bill: proposed laws• District: area of a representative• Quorum: Minimum number of members

needed to conduction official actions• Censure: vote of formal disapproval of a

member’s actions

House of Representatives

• Redistricting– Changing district borders to reflect changes in

population– Census used to determine changes• Census is a population count every 10 years

• Gerrymandering: to draw a district’s boundaries to gain an advantage in an election

House of Representatives (H of R)

• Committees– H of R so large is divides up jobs to be more

efficient– Reps tend to focus in areas• Especially area important to their constituents

House of Representatives(H of R)

• Speaker of the House– Leader of the H of R– Chosen by majority party in a

caucus (closed mtg)– Powers:• Recognize first members to speak• Organizes the Calendars - bill

schedules• Appoint committee members• 3rd in succession to President

House of Representatives(H of R)

• Majority Leader– Top Assistant to the Speaker of the Houser• Help plan the party’s legislative program• Steer important bills through the House• Make sure chairpersons work on important bills of the

party• Floor leader of his/her party

• Whips: assistants to the Majority Leader

House of Representatives(H of R)

• Minority Leader– Leader of the party with

less than majority in H of R

– Help plan the party’s legislative program

– Steer important bills through the House

House of Representatives(H of R)

• 6 Purposes of House Leaders1. Unify their party2. Schedule work for House3. Make sure members are there for votes4. Communicate info 5. Stay in contact with the President6. Influence members of their party

House of Representatives(H of R)

• Rules for Lawmaking– Complex• Try to move legislation quickly once its on the floor

– Limits to speaking – minutes per representative– Debates usually last only 1 day

Senate• Elected “At-large”:

as a whole, statewide

• Informal Atmosphere– Fewer rules that the

H of R– Debate can last for

long periods of time• Weeks or months

Senate

• Leaders– Vice President is the President of the Senate– Powers are less that the

Speaker of the House• VP is NOT an elected member of

the Senate• Powers:

– May recognize members to speak– Put questions to a vote

• VP may NOT vote on items unless there is a tie vote

Senate• Leaders– Vice President is usually

absent for Senate Mtgs• President Pro Tempore– Runs the senate in the

absence of VP– Chosen from the Majority

Party• Usually the most senior

member

Senate• Majority and Minority Leaders– Leaders of their parties– Whips assist them in their duties

Senate

Senate• Filibuster– Debates on bills have NO limit– A Senator keeps talking until the majority of the

Senate agrees to abandon the bill or change it– Senators must stand and talk

• After the first 3 hours, the Senator may talk about anything he wants (read telephone book, etc)

– Cloture• If 3/5 of the Senate may vote to cloture or end a

filibuster

– Senator Thurmond spoke against the Civil Rights Act of 1957 for 24 hours and 18 minutes